Benning / Dorothy I. Height Neighborhood Library

The Benning / Dorothy I. Height Neighborhood Library is a branch of the District of Columbia Public Library system, located in Benning, a neighborhood in Northeast Washington, D.C.

Benning / Dorothy I. Height Neighborhood Library
CountryUnited States
TypePublic library
Established1962; reopened 2010
Location3935 Benning Road NE, Washington, D.C. 20019
Coordinates38.894099°N 76.947765°W / 38.894099; -76.947765
Branch ofDistrict of Columbia Public Library
Website
Map

History
The interior of the new Benning / Dorothy I. Height Neighborhood Library, pictured in 2011.

The site at 3935 Benning Road NE was previously home to a library designed by Clark T. Harmon as part of a D.C. Public Works Program initiative, a one-story brick-and-concrete building that opened in 1962. The library had played an important role in the surrounding community since its inception.[1]

In 2004, the original library was closed to make way for a new structure on the same site, as part of a citywide push to revamp D.C.'s public libraries. An interim library served the Benning community while construction was underway.[2][3][4][5]

The new Benning / Dorothy I. Height branch of the DCPL opened on April 5, 2010.[1][6][7]

It was named in honor of Dorothy Height, an influential civil rights and women's rights activist.[7]

The new library was designed by the architecture firm Davis Brody Bond Aedas. Construction of the two-story, 22,000-square-foot building cost $12 million.[1][8][9]

The library features public art from artists based in D.C.'s Ward 7.[1][10]

See also

References
  1. "Benning Library History". District of Columbia Public Library. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  2. Reed, Dan (2019-03-19). "New Public Libraries Are Some of the Best Buildings in DC". Washingtonian. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  3. Acosta, Marcel C. (2008-03-27). "BENNING NEIGHBORHOOD LIBRARY LIBRARY REPLACEMENT" (PDF). National Capital Planning Commission.
  4. Austermuhle, Martin (2012-06-29). "The New Cathedral: D.C.'s Rebuilt Public Libraries Draw Praise for Design and Purpose". DCist. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  5. Kennicott, Philip (2010-04-05). "Benning library is well worth checking out; High-tech advances aside, designers didn't throw out the book in planning facility". The Washington Post.
  6. "Benning (Dorothy I. Height) Library". District of Columbia Public Library. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  7. Highsmith, Carol M. (September 2011). "Dorothy I. Height/Benning Neighborhood Library, Washington, D.C." Library of Congress. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  8. Renwick, Dustin (2017-03-30). "6 beautiful libraries in D.C. by famous architects". Curbed DC. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  9. "Progress and Promise Mark New Benning Library Opening". District of Columbia Public Library. 2010-04-04. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  10. "Benning Neighborhood Library FAQs". District of Columbia Public Library. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
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